COLUMBUS—It was just another turnover in an early Ohio State basketball practice. Or was it? Sophomore forward Deshaun Thomas flashed from the baseline to the high post, caught the ball and attempted to feed it inside to star center Jared Sullinger. The ball was deflected and stolen.

A lot of coaches might see this as a teachable moment. And one of the OSU assistants immediately began to correct Thomas.

What do you love in life? Bruce Springsteen? Fried mozzarella? "Breaking Bad"? Whatever it is, however much you love it, Deshaun Thomas loves to shoot the basketball more.

Thomas couldn’t help but laugh when that was put to him. “It’s close. It could be,” he said. He knows his reputation. His teammates tease him about it now and again.

Wednesday afternoon’s practice confirmed it: If there’s a chance for Thomas to shoot the ball, it’s going to happen. Thing is, he went through the entire 150 minutes without taking a bad shot, without a shot that would leave even the most severe critic wondering: Why?

“This year, it’s more of a calmed-down situation,” Thomas, a 6-7 sophomore from Fort Wayne, Ind., told Sporting News. “I want to get good shots.”

As a freshman at the edge of Matta’s smallish rotation last season, Thomas averaged a shot every 2.36 minutes. If that doesn’t sound like a lot, perhaps some context is needed: Sullinger, OSU’s leader in scoring and rebounding, a first-team All-American, shot it once every 2.86 minutes.

This is why Thomas’ importance to this season’s Buckeyes — ranked No. 3 in preseason by Sporting News — cannot be overstated. Sullinger and senior guard William Buford are going to be the team’s primary options and probably the top two scorers. As long as Thomas gets serious time, though, he will take a lot of shots.

Matta has not even begun working on his lineup, but Thomas most likely will be the power forward, next to Sullinger. In that role, Thomas is going to be a demon for opposing 4-men to defend because Thomas can shoot it from long range (21 3-pointers last season) and can score in the post (53 percent shooting on 2-pointers. He also can drive the ball and get himself fouled (79.7 percent on free throws). He is a hungry offensive rebounder (62 of his 131 boards last season) because he understands, at his core, that means more opportunities to get shots.

“It’s just being in that right moment,” Thomas said. “I’m the kind of guy, there’s like a string — I’m always attached to the ball. So it’s just being in the right spot. It’s just a knack for the ball I have. That’s what’s special about me.”

As a freshman, there was a little too much of him to be truly special. Thomas gained weight through OSU’s strength program because it seemed like the prudent course for a young player who was the closest thing to a big man after Sullinger and senior Dallas Lauderdale. After Thomas spent the season weighing more than 230 pounds, the Buckeyes decided to reverse course.

“We wanted to get him where he was more explosive, he was quicker, he was faster. And to his credit, he’s done that,” Matta said. “When he got here — and we talked to him about this — when he hit the threshold of pain he’d quit. And we tried to convince him that the grass is greener on the other side, but you’ve got to get through it. I think he’s learned how to do that.”

Thomas, who is 6-7, has slimmed down to 216 pounds now, looking leaner and playing more above the rim. The soreness in his knees, which he says was caused by the extra weight, is gone.

“He was too heavy, and it wasn’t working,” said Dave Richardson, the team’s strength and conditioning coach. “He struggled a little bit with some of the conditioning drills.

“We don’t want to make guys big for the purpose of being big. There’s got to be a reason. You can get stronger without getting bigger.”

The biggest obstacle to playing time for Thomas last season, aside from Matta’s discomfort at removing seniors David Lighty and Jon Diebler from the game, was adjusting to college-level defense. Increased quickness should help Thomas in that regard, as well as the experience gained playing and watching those veterans do their jobs.

“I learned more from playing around David Lighty, and I think I can help this team on defense, too,” Thomas said. “The most important thing was energy. They never took a day off — Dave, Jon, Dallas. Their energy took our team to another level.”

That level included championships in the Big Ten regular season and Big Ten Tournament and the No. 1-overall seed in the NCAA Tournament, but not the Final Four. That’s the next level for these Buckeyes. Thomas will take a shot or two at anyone who tries to stop them.